Frivolity of Need
by Death7270
Summary: Seeking answers into the past of one of Gotham's most villainous. A tryst could turn into more than was expected or wanted. But perhaps it was needed. Erotica and story, combining a bit from the Marvel universe but not enough to call it a crossover. Naughty naughty.


Disclaimer: I don't own Batman or it's characters (or any other DC/Marvel stuff). Wish I did but. :)

* * *

"Bats, why are you so good to me?"

The Batman turned and looked down at the red and black costumed villain.

"I mean sure you've beaten me, broken a few of my ribs every now and then, but so has 'puddin'. What I really mean is why do you keep saving me from myself?"

It had been another hectic chase across the roof tops of the Gotham skyline. Harley had the advantage but had miss judged the distance and was free falling the 50 story drop when he had swung in to catch her.

"That's simple, most criminals in Gotham are simply evil, Killer Croc, Zsasz, the Joker." he said the last with a pointed scowl before continuing "Others have been changed by great trauma and cannot help what they have become. Two-face is the best example. Then there are those who do things for the fun of it. Catwoman, Riddler and so on. One day criminal next just another masked vigilante. Then there are the very few that are good deep down, who do evil for reasons of love and life. Freeze hunting for a cure for his wife. Ivy seeking to save the world from mans destructive nature. You, seeking the love you never had in the life before meeting Joker."

Harley sighed and shifted so she could see the sun rise "You know about the drugs?"

"Ivy told me years ago."

"When I was treating 'puddin' he was also psycho analysing me in return. He's incredibly smart, he sees the world differently but he's not exactly insane. On any given day he can be a goofy clown or a mass murdering psychopath. I would say he is trapped in a form of sensory overload, super sanity. His body copes not by means of multiple personalities but by using multiple personality traits. He subconsciously selects a set of traits he needs at anyhow given moment and focus on those traits and skills to accomplish what is needed. He reads and studies constantly out of boredom, has a eidetic memory. Take all that, lock him in a cell what happens?"

Batman paused "Once he gets bored he shuts down all the traits he doesn't need and focuses on getting out."

Harley nodded "Structural engineering, escape artistry, chemical science, etc. a full set of skills with one purpose, leave the cell. What may take months or years for one of the regular inmates to concoct he can do in days or weeks."

"I had some idea of this when I read your notes on him from your sessions before you turned."

Harley nodded, her face plain "At some point in his past his mind recognised it needed focus, a theme if you will that would guide it. I doubt there is anyone who could imagine what it would be like to have his condition without a persona. Most likely they would have gone insane. For example, you have access to the combined knowledge of every artist, their thoughts on how to paint, what styles to use. So you sit down to paint something using those skills. Its easy to paint portraits and copies of things but what if you wanted to paint something from your imagination you'd be tearing your hair out in minutes. The 'clown' allows him to focus. It's chaotic in nature so it becomes a perfect medium. I've seen him paint masterpiece after masterpiece. Simple or complex like his traps and inventions."

Batman nodded "And you."

Harley smiled "Yes me, when he met me his subconscious must have recognised the need of me. He analysed me, worked out my value. Then he began molding me to suite. Remember how he used to kill indiscriminately before I met him. He was on a destructive bender. But with me at his side it stopped or at least slowed down. I was his check and balance." Harley giggled"Do I blow up Gotham today, no because Harley would not be able to go to the zoo next week."

"Do I kill a bus load of kids, but if I did Harley would be upset with me so instead I will just blow up a seniors home because the elderly are funny. He said that once to me. I took it as a mad jest not an actually reasoning" Batman commented.

Harley nodded once more "Sad but true. Like with you he can focus on you, his arch nemesis, thought he does not care if he killed everyone in the world he would be lonely and thus bored, so subconsciously he uses you as a focus another check and balance to his chaos. With you around it's murder with theater not just cold blooded murder because I'm bored. There were dozens of joker gangs he killed off but with me around he stopped, unless he became really unhappy with a goon. Now the boyz are like family to him. They sleep easier too."

"But the drugs were..."

"Necessary. I was waking up, I killed dozens of people by then. I could walk into a police station or elementary school and mow them down, not that I ever did the later. I woke up and realised my crimes, began doing self checks and balances on myself. So he drugged me, a serum scarecrow had whipped up, a mix of the joker gas and scares fear drug. It made me complying and also immune to to effects of both the joker gas and fear drug."

"At a cost to your ability to logically reason."

Harley sighed and turned away from the bright sunrise "You guessed it, overall suppressed my key personality too. Made me a bit ditzy. I could not function as fully as I had, gone was much of what me... well was me. He became more dark in response. Those years of terror was because I went from his lover to his lead henchgirl. He beat me and broke me, the drugs made me so compliant that I did not care. Ivy took pity on me. Fixed me up after each time, when 'puddin' became really bad that he sent me away I hung with her and cats for a bit. But each day I wished I was with him. Then when Joker hunted me down and killed me, Crane came forward and told Ivy about the serum. She resurrected me with her blood and stuff gave me my super strength and other things to protect me. With scares help they purged the effects from my body, but the damage was done. It's fucked with my moral compass, I cannot go back to what I was, nor do I want to do so, but I will not blindly follow him anymore. I enjoy the life I have."

Batman picked her up and walked over to the edge of the building.

"What's up b'man? Gonna drop me off the edge?"

"Yes." Batman let go.

* * *

The air rippled around her. The force of wind buffeting her from below and caused the bells on her cap to jingle. She screamed at first but after the first 10 floors she smiled and began to laugh, she somersaulted and did a triple helix before angling herself face down for the finale.

The world lurched and her decent stopped, her nose barely in reach of the pavement below.

"You know, I know, you know you would not kill me. I may be tough but a fall from 70 stories would kill most. So what did you learn."

"You still show fear, reasoning and have a love for life. If your moral compass had changed so much that you did not I may have just granted your death wish."

"Good old bats. I like you allot. Did you know the Punisher is kinda hot."

"No, Frank is not my type."

Harley flipped out of his grip and righted herself.

"He has killed over 43000 crooks, crims and generally bad dudes. Wiped out mob families and drug lords on 7 continents. Done the dirty with enough hot chicks to make even cupid blush. But he soldiers on. He is a true psychopath."

"Your point?"

Harley took on a rigid stance and her tone hardened loosing the frivolity it normally held "You have never killed a single person (that I know of) and have done more good for the world than he could ever do. You've made criminals allies, brokered arms deals. Accepted that drug dealers serve a purpose. Crime will always exist in one form or another, why cut the weeds when they will just grow back. If you let it grow you can grab onto it with both hands and pull it out at the root."

"Castle is angry, he would kill the good with the bad. Like a broad sword to my scalpel."

"Why not kill the Joker? Had you done so when he first stood up all those lives would have been saved. A stadium with 95874 people would be alive today. Why not just kill him, just him?"

"You sound like the Red Hood, control crime, kill your competition and thus minimise collateral damage long term."

Harley turned "The punisher has killed less than you have lost by not killing one person. And the stadium is just one instance, I cannot truly imagine how many stadiums worth Joker has killed but it would have be at least 7 I know of."

Batman looked up to the roof top, scowled then lowered his head.

Harley pirouetted before dropping onto a pile of cardboard "I know your reasons, it was a rhetorical question. You need not defend yourself to me or others. Arkham is the most secure place to keep him. But I pray that one day a guard or doctor or some random vigilante puts him down for his own sake as well as everyone else's."

"What do you intend to do now Harley?"

"I don't know, it's been a nearly 8 years since I started down this path. I've enjoyed every moment even the dark times. I regret little. I don't want to go back to what I was. A thrill-less nobody. Red's been great to me but I miss the old days with my 'puddin'."

"Choose your path."

"You could always take me in. I did just broke into a toy store and stole all the candy." She smiled holding up the small sack.

Batman scowled "A meaningless crime for attention. I know you too well."

"As do I Bruce."

Batman stood still.

"Oh, please. Everyone knows who you are. We just follow the code. Joker worked it out years ago but refused to act on it knowing it would spoil the fun. Every major crime boss knows it's you BEHIND the Batman. I and just a select few know it's actually you behind THE MASK."

The scowl darkened before his lips curled slightly "And I know, you know, I know that you know I know, you know I know this."

Harley giggled "Confusing double blinds, of honor and trust. We guard your identity in exchange you protect us from ourselves and outsiders. It would only take a guy like the Punisher half a day to wipe out every single criminal network in Gotham. All those years of work you put into us destroyed. Minor crime in Gotham may be slightly higher than any other city in the world but major crime is lower across the board. Instances of supercrimes may be high but that's what we've got you for. If all the players were thrown off the board at this juncture we'd be no better than any other city."

Batman smirked "Smart and deadly."

Harley saluted "That's me!"

"Come with me"

Harley spread her arms and held onto his body as he gripped her waist to him "Oh we going on a date."

"Not exactly." He growled shooting a grapple.

Harley squealed with joy as they ascended into the early morning sky.


End file.
